I tighten my hold. In the near darkness, I watch as his face swells from the lack of oxygen. “Let’s try this again. The desperate feeling you feel right now, the god-please-don’t-let-me-die feeling, the feeling of being helpless, paralyzed, desperate for a gasp of air, all of those feelings are nothing compared to the pain I can cause you. With only my bare hands, I could hurt you beyond repair, worse than anything your sick imagination can conceive.”
One of his hands, slick with his blood, loses its grip on my arm. “Fine,” he growls.
“Great! I’m glad we had this little chat.” I apply just the right amount of pressure to his airway. His body goes limp under me. I’m not convinced he’ll confess, but at least it’s a start. I stand up, smoothing down my dress. Without thinking, I flip Josh’s limp body over and kick him as hard as I can in the balls. “Fucker.”
I go to wipe my face, then stop. Luca’s words ring in my head. I still need to go back to the party, and I don’t want to look like I was just in a fighting match with a rapist.
Clapping from behind me has me jerking around to see my audience. Edge and Kade stand at the bend in the maze. I make my way to them, remembering to walk on the balls of my feet to keep my heels from sinking into the dirt.
Kade pulls me into his arms, hugging me tight to his chest. “Just seeing him get the shit beat out of him puts a smile on my face. I owe you. It’s not all he deserves, but I’ll be able to helpwith that.” He holds up his phone to show he caught the whole thing on video.
I pull away. “The only thing you owe me is a race.”
For the first time, he delivers a genuine, complete smile. He gives Edge a fist bump before heading out of the maze.
“How did no one come and see any of that?”
“Kade and I had the area blocked. You guys were at a dead end, so it made it easy. Besides, most people are already drunk.”
Without a word, Edge takes me into his arms. I lean against his chest for a beat before he takes my hand and leads me farther into the maze, deeper into the darkness.
25
EDGE
My eyes never leave Ninja.I trail after her as she slips through the crowd into the darkness. I wonder where she’s going by herself but refrain from following until I notice Josh follow her out.
She’s up to something, and I want to know what it is. Plus, I’m not about to let Josh lay a finger on her. If I’m being completely honest, I also have the menacing hope to get him in a dark place—despite my orders—to kick the fucking shit out of his pussy ass.
I jerk my chin at Kade. He gets up and walks in the direction I indicate. After peeling Brielle’s hands off me, I push her drunken ass back into the chair. “Stay the fuck away from me, Brielle.”
“Come on, baby. Don’t leave me. Dance with me.” She tries to stand but falls over. Her friends catch her before she lands on the ground.
I follow Kade outside. He pauses at the entrance of the maze. A few people run out, cheering that they found the exit. We blindly walk through the tall hedges until we hear Josh’s faint voice. He’s laughing and making stupid-ass jokes. I don’t hearmy little Ninja, but she’s with him. I can smell the faint scent of her perfume.
Kade peers around the corner before walking right up on Josh as he starts to manhandle and grope Ninja. The shit he says to her has my blood fucking boiling. Kade starts to step in, but I grab his shirt sleeve and shake my head. He looks at me like I’ve lost my damn mind. I want to kill the fucker, just like I’ve imagined a thousand times in a hundred different ways. I swore if he ever touched Ninja, I would end him. But like always, she has the situation under control.
“What the fuck?” Kade mouths.
“She’s got this,” I whisper back.
He does as I ask, but I know it’s killing him not to jump in and break Josh’s face himself. He’s had his sights on Josh Carter for two years. And now, here’s his chance to take him down and save the girl. It’s the perfect excuse to get revenge for what he did to Abigail.
Josh and Ninja go back and forth. I can tell she’s playing with him. She’s the hunter, and he’s her prey. He doesn’t see it that way, but I have no doubt he will. And soon.
Steam practically comes out of Kade’s head. He starts forward again, and again, I grip his sleeve to stop him.
Ninja lets Josh make his first move. He grabs her, a sloppy hold she easily maneuvers out of. Then she delivers her first strike just above his ear.
Josh swipes at the side of his head. “That wasn’t very nice.”
“Maybe it has something to do with you trying to take something I’m not giving.”
“Oooh, looks like you enjoy playing rough. This is going to be fun.” Josh starts for her again. His hands reach out and yank her forearm.
I hold my stance. My fist is pressed to my mouth as I try to remain calm.
She spins out of his hold. As she comes to face him again, the lines of her face are smooth with determination and anger. I’ve been dancing in the cage and on the mat long enough to know what that look of fire means. She’s done playing. The next time he starts for her, Ninja doesn’t waste time. She punches him in his face. Bones crack, and blood spurts from his nose.
